1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a communication eyewear assembly that is structured be worn on a person's head so as to protect the person's eyes and also to permit hands-free wireless multimedia communication. The communication eyewear assembly is additionally structured to identify a zone of safety about the wearer and to notify the wearer and/or others of the zone of safety. Moreover, the assembly can process a variety of data, receivable from a variety of sources, to ascertain and/or identify the zone of safety. The assembly can also determine existence of extraordinary circumstances based on changes or lack of changes in the data, and notify the wearer and/or others of same, particularly with regard to the status of the wearer.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of eyewear, particularly protective eyewear, such as sunglasses, sports eyewear, or safety glasses, has achieved near universal adoption by modern society. So too has the use of various types of communication devices, such as radios, portable music players, smart phones, tablets, etc. More recently, attempts have been made to combine certain features of each of these types of equipment to address the needs of persons who require both eye protection and audiovisual communicability, such as people working in industrial, mining, construction, or military settings. Indeed, some such technology has begun to expand into entertainment and leisure applications such as sports and interactive gaming. However, despite some progress in the art, current technologies have failed to address many significant challenges.
One problem with current devices is that they do not adequately combine audio, visual, and communicative features into a single, integrated device, particularly one that provides quality in-ear audio in a noisy environment. In some cases, such as those involving the fledgling technology of “augmented reality” eyewear, existing devices might typically include a visual display and remote communication features, but lack any audio capabilities. In other cases, such devices might focus primarily on audio communications. Indeed, some existing telecommunication eyewear might provide only rudimentary visual information such as a street name, a retail store location, etc., or perhaps even lack a visual display altogether. Another common drawback involves the typical speaker functionality which is not adequately structured to deliver quality sound to the wearer, especially in noisy environments. Accordingly, there is a need to provide a communication eyewear assembly that is structured to permit hands-free wireless multimedia communication and which overcomes these shortcomings to combine audio, visual, and communicative features into a single, integrated device, particularly one that provides quality in-ear audio in a noisy environment.
Another problem with current head-worn devices is that they lack adequate measures for dealing with the effects of operating in potentially hazardous environments, in that they are not sufficiently structured to distinguish ordinary, safe environments or situations from hazardous ones. For instance, when a person is operating in a hazardous environment that requires use of telecommunication eyewear, it can be critical for the person to have the ability to discern a safe situation from a dangerous one. Presently, this is left to either the wearer's own instincts and observations, or perhaps a combination of those plus observations from remote observers who are in radio contact with the wearer. It would therefore be advantageous to overcome these limitations by providing for a communication eyewear assembly that is structured to identify a zone of safety about the wearer and to notify the wearer and/or others of the zone of safety, as distinguished from hazardous zones. It would be a further benefit for such an assembly to have the capability of processing a variety of data, receivable from a variety of sources, to ascertain and/or identify the zone of safety.
Further still, human beings operating in dangerous environments are susceptible to numerous dangers which can lead to immobility, injury, incapacity, or other sudden changes in status. Moreover, the general status of such environments can change rapidly, potentially affecting the wearer of communications equipment and/or other people or things in the vicinity. As such, it would also be beneficial to provide for a communication eyewear assembly that can determine the existence of extraordinary circumstances based on changes or lack of changes in observed data, and notify the wearer and/or others of same, particularly with regard to the identity, condition, location or other status of the wearer.